


Karma

by Chuizard



Series: Lingles RPs [5]
Category: Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game)
Genre: Drow, Half-Elves, M/M, Slow Romance, Tieflings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-23
Updated: 2019-07-23
Packaged: 2021-03-02 23:35:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,798
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24155182
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chuizard/pseuds/Chuizard
Summary: A little backstory between Karma and Luck. Turns out she's even more than just an ally to Jingles!Posting the roleplays from Discord for myself and Ali (foreignobjecticus). If you happen to read them and like them somehow let us know! There may be two distinct writing styles in here because it's... well... a roleplay.Jingles belongs to me and Luck (aka Kratis) belongs to Ali (foreignobjecticus). This was posted with permission from both parties.Karma (aka Karnir) and Briyir belong to Ali (foreignobjecticus).
Relationships: Luck/Jingles
Series: Lingles RPs [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1734376





	Karma

**If he’d just gone with Jingles, just insisted they meet the person who’d gotten their jester off the hook for killing the King… He’d been so close to home, so close to seeing Karnir for the first time in twenty years.**

Jingles had appeared at the door to the bathhouse a few days after they’d returned from their ocean expedition. Despite being underwater for days on end, Luck felt the need for a long, hot soak that ended up lasting for almost as long as they’d been away. If the jester hadn’t been hanging around the bathhouse all afternoon, occasionally peeking his head in as others entered, Luck would have been content to spend the rest of the week soaking himself into a prune-like state and employing the local dragonborns to give him massages and bring him meals. A man could get used to that life… and with his newly-earned gold weighing heavy in his pockets he had every intention of staying inside. But the jester kept nagging his thoughts, and as lunch came and went, the anxious tinkle of bells outside began to grate on his nerves until he could take it no longer. Cutting short the massage he was thoroughly enjoying, Luck tensed his shoulders and shrugged off the hands of the dragonborn above him. He stood with a sigh and wrapped a fluffy dry towel loosely around his hips (loathe to bother, but something in the back of his head told him stepping outside in the nude wouldn’t fly with Destane). Throwing the bathhouse door open, Luck stepped outside and predictably ran directly into his friend.

_Someone wants to meet him in Trolda Bay? Now?_ Luck didn’t quite understand why the jester hadn’t just come in to tell him that; if someone wanted to meet him, presumably they could have sailed first thing in the morning? Thankfully the tiefling was too caught up in his own hedonism to really dwell on the fact, so instead he ducked back into the bathhouse to dress and sail to the settlement that afternoon. The sail was quick and smooth; with a steady wind and clear skies, even Jingles seemed unaffected by being on a small boat. Mercifully it looked like he was finally growing his sea legs.

They entered the pub in Trolda Bay and Luck made an offhand comment about their first meeting; it’d been here at this same bar that Luck had played a cheesy card trick on the jester a few months ago now. It made him glow a little at the thought, though the jester didn’t seem to want to speak. Judging by the way the usually energetic kid was now casting his eyes back and forth across the pub, he was looking for their contact. Luck honestly hadn’t bothered to ask who it was they were meeting, and when little Karnir had appeared through the throng, he’d been caught completely by surprise.

_Briyir was dead. **Fuck.**_ Years ago, now. The resistance had been plotting to kill King Sam, Jingles had got there first, they’d happily taken the credit, and now here was the woman that’d helped orchestrate Jingles’ release sitting in front of him, twenty years older, family-less, with scars and frown lines that didn’t fit her thirty years at all… but _alive_ and _**kicking**_. God he was proud! Luck had thrown money at the girl, uncharacteristically generous amounts, and surprisingly so had Jingles. With that, their meeting came to a necessary end all too soon while Luck tried to swallow a million and one questions which made him feel so unlike the mentor he’d been when they were just kids. Luck threw his arms around Karnir and hugged her as tight as he could when she left, but the moment was as brief and bitter as it’d been twenty years ago and left his arms aching and cold while his heart ached with the guilt he’d squished back down so many times before.

It was late… they’d have to stay the night. Luck might have been a decent sailor and he could get them to Trolda Bay by daylight, but the lack of maps to the Stronghold and his years of landfaring left his skills shaky at best. After meeting his old friend, he could use the rest anyway. They’d paid for separate rooms (he hadn’t even thought about offering to share), but Jingles seemed to hover by the doors in the hallway as they went to part. The jester looked uncertain and _desperately_ curious about all that had occurred. While he knew Karnir (as Karma, ironically enough), Jingles would have had no clue as to their cryptic words or the relationship they’d shared so long ago. A brief smirk passed across his otherwise numb face; he’d told the jester so much already – what did he have to lose? _A damned good ally if you keep on with your secrets._ “Come have a nightcap,” he bowed his head, throwing the door open and standing aside with his hand outstretched as an invitation to the room.

Jingles knew it was a _community_ bath house, but he still didn't want to enter it despite the fact he needed to speak to Luck. He mostly wanted to respect the man's privacy- it's not like he was going to spend _all day_ in the bath... right? Wrong. Jingles was waiting outside the communal bath much longer than he anticipated, but he stubbornly continued waiting until Luck finally came out. The man merely had a towel around his hips. Jingles darted his eyes to the side to avoid staring. His cheeks heated up a little, but thankfully his make-up masked whatever flustered blush that manifested. He cleared his throat and took in a breath to collect himself before telling Luck that he had a friend he'd like him to meet in Trolda Bay. Jingles was thankful that the man didn't question who or why and simply agreed to go this afternoon. Luck re-entered the bath house, presumably to get dressed, and Jingles headed over to the docks to wait for him.

When they arrived at the bar in Trolda Bay, Jingles vaguely heard Luck make a comment about their first meeting being here. While this was true, the jester was more concerned about meeting up with Karma and why she wanted to meet with Luck. He assumed that she may need help with something related to Crestport, but he hoped to whatever gods would listen that they wouldn't have to go to that accursed city.

Jingles was befuddled when Karma greeted Luck like an old friend. They started speaking with each other and Jingles couldn't help but to stutter out a question. "W-wait, you two _know_ each other?"

"Of course, how else would I have known Luck's name?" Karma simply replied.

That... made sense. At least it made more sense than what Jingles had thought before. Karma was already an assassin, so he assumed she had ways of getting information on others like a spy would.

As the conversation continued Jingles felt a little left out. Karma and Luck were exchanging some information and... it sounded like someone died- to the Crestport guards no less. And they were killed simply because they were a tiefling in the wrong place at the wrong time. Jingles' stomach sank as memories of when he was jailed in Crestport came to mind. They didn't have to jail him. They could have just killed him. Jingles was surprised they didn't. Karma even admitted that Jingles was very lucky to be alive.

Thankfully it seemed like they wouldn't have to return to Crestport. Karma was working to change the city in a less violent way. Luck slammed down five hundred gold pieces almost immediately. It was unlike the tiefling to give away money like that, but this was for a cause that he more than supported. Jingles followed suit and put another five hundred on the table. Crestport needed to change and Jingles would be damned if he didn't help in one way or another.

They soon parted with Karma and decided to spend the night. Jingles could have performed for free rooms but he was worried about Luck. He too knew what it was like to lose someone close to you because of Crestport's racist bigotry, so he wanted to know if the man was okay. Admittedly he was also really curious about his past. Luckily the tiefling caught on and invited him into his room. Jingles smiled at Luck. "Thank you." He said as he passed by him to enter the room.

Luck felt the silence of his cold dark room all too keenly as they walked inside. It was beyond his current ability to use prestidigitation to light the lamps now, so instead he wandered towards the partially open window and threw the curtains open fully. If Jingles wanted to turn the lights on, he wouldn't complain, but it just didn't feel appropriate to Luck right now. 

"I suppose you had no idea who she was, did you?" Luck asked, turning to look at Jingles though he found his eyes wandering everywhere apart from the jester. Luck allowed the silence to drag on a little longer and his heart ached as he wrangled his thoughts into some sort of order.

"Karnir was- like my apprentice, many years ago back in Crestport. Bryir was her brother... they were inseparable. We used to run street swindling and break and enter houses in the halfling sides of town; made a small fortune off their fat hoards... I haven't seen them- her- since I left for good. I never told them why I really left," Luck waved his hand, swallowing down the words. He didn't want to say it; he was getting past it... "The slavery... trying to keep _them_ safe from what was going on..." A shiver ran up his spine and goosebumps rose on his arms despite the heat of his tiefling skin. There was anger boiling under the misery that was tearing through him, the guilt that was constricting his throat and making it hard to breathe even in the cold room. Luck's eyes flicked over Jingles and the memory the kid's scarred body and mutilated limbs made his fingers fan and coil, the urge to lash out barely quashed... 

"I WAS ALL THEY HAD AND I **LEFT**!"

Jingles didn't really mind the darkness of the room. It took a couple seconds for his eyes to adjust to the lack of lighting. Thanks to his dark vision he could see everything in the room just fine- even if Luck hadn't drawn the window's curtains. The room had a sense of familiarity to it like a past home would. He had previously stayed at this tavern for a few days some months ago and most of his memories here were indifferent or positive. In other words, he felt safe here in this little town. This is were he met most of his current party members- including Luck- and he had met with Karma twice here. Perhaps he even thought of his place to be the closest thing he had to a home- even more than the stronghold, despite spending more time there.

 _"_ _I suppose you had no idea who she was, did you?"_ Luck broke the silence.

Jingles shook his head and his cowl's bells tinkled lightly. "I didn't." He admitted. In fact he took a great risk meeting with her back in Crestport, but in the end he was glad he took that risk. She was a great ally and Jingles might even consider her a friend. He quietly listened to Luck speak and frowned at what he was told. Like himself, Luck lost someone close to him. Though he said that Karnir and the now deceased Bryir were his apprentices, Jingles had a feeling that they were a bit like family to each other. Jingles understand the tieflings sadness and his anger. He felt similar solemn emotions when he found out he had lost his own father to Crestport, and he had killed the halfing king out of spite.

Jingles gently took Luck's hand into his own and looked the man straight in the eye. "It's easy to blame yourself for what happened, isn't it? By the sounds of it, both of us left people in Crestport and unfortunately lost someone to the damned city..." He did his best to keep his emotions tame. He wanted Luck to know he wasn't alone and understood him more than any other friend could. "So they were the ones you were trying to protect by selling slaves? Even though you left the city, you still protected them the best you could. That was very gracious of you." Jingles tried to provide some comfort.

Jingles sighed as his own emotions were saddening him. "It's hard to lose someone, I know. And it's easy to think that you could have prevented it or done _something_ if you were there." The jester gripped Luck's hand tightly as he silently berated himself for leaving his parents. "But instead of thinking of what we _could_ have done, let's do our best to prevent it from happening again and prevent it from happening to anyone else. Crestport needs to change- the whole damned country needs to change, and we... we will _make_ it change." Determination burned in his golden eyes. Just like Luck, Jingles had his own resentment for the world and its wrongdoings inside him.

"Do you want me to stay with you for the night?" Jingles offered. "I'm all ears if you need to talk some more or if you just want a shoulder to cry on, I won't mind..."

_"So they were the ones you were trying to protect by selling slaves? Even though you left the city, you still protected them the best you could. That was very gracious of you."_ Luck wanted to speak then, to bite back and spit out a vicious jibe that Jingles didn’t deserve. He did it because they were family and that’s what you did.

 _"_ _It's hard to lose someone, I know. And it's easy to think that you could have prevented it or done something if you were there."_ Luck felt the press of gloved hands against his and his heart fluttered, his own fingers returning the grasp. It felt nice, intimate… and his thoughts blurred a little as Jingles spoke… _we will make it change._ Luck looked into the other’s eyes as he spoke and was almost shocked to see the fire of determination shining through Jingles’ sad eyes. The kid had lost so much to Crestport too; he understood what Luck was going through, and the older tiefling took a few seconds too long to realise just how deep that really ran for Jingles.

“Fuck,” he half-whispered, the words puffing from his lips with hardly a bit of effort. His heart sank as he held back tears that were quickly turning from shame to anger.

_Do you want me to stay with you for the night? I'm all ears if you need to talk some more or if you just want a shoulder to cry on, I won't mind..._...no. No, he couldn't have that.

It was a sore temptation, undoubtedly, but something in the back of Luck's mind was screaming at him to stop this conversation now. He'd already let his emotions overcome him - Jingles didn't have to know who Karma really was; it wasn't going to change what was happening in Crestport now. The jester had already proven himself to be an ally, whatever his intentions were. Why bother the kid with things that didn't matter? "No, thanks, Jingles..." Luck huffed out, swallowing down the irritation that was brewing in his chest. He was getting soft - he had to stop letting the little drow get to him. "I think I just need to sleep. It's been a tiring few weeks under the water; we probably both need a long sleep." He looked up at the jester then, eyes meeting for the briefest of moments before he flicked them away to close the curtains and plunge the room into darkness.

"You get some sleep too. I'll wake you up when it's time to leave."

As Luck pushed the door closed behind Jingles, he felt the energy draining from his limbs - all the guff about needing sleep had been a hasty ruse, but now it seemed it was actually catching up on him. Luck's limbs felt like lead as he shucked his clothing onto the floor, and he hardly had any energy left to wonder whether his kicking Jingles out had been as clumsy and heavy-handed as he imagine, but his eyes were closing and the anguish of the day disappeared as he slipped into oblivion.


End file.
